Arsenal’s negotiators are understood to be working overtime in a bid to sign Parma starlet Danilo Pereira before transfer deadline day.

Talent: Danilo Pereira vies for the ball with Carlos Luque of Argentina during the recent FIFA U-20 World Cup (Picture: AFP)

Both the Gunners and Liverpool have signalled their interest in the Portuguese 19-year-old, whose versatility in both attack and defence has had prospective scouts salivating.

Likened to Patrick Vieira with his tough and uncompromising approach, Danilo shone during the recent U20 World Cup in Colombia where Portugal made the final – only to lose 3-2 to Brazil.

Parma paid Benfica just â¬150,000 (Â£133,000) to secure Danilo, who emigrated to Portugal from Guinea-Bissau.

Fittingly, the name Arsenal resonates with the young starlet – who played for a high-performance youth development team called Arsenal 72.

Gunners manager Arsene Wenger may look to use Danilo in a central role alongside Emmanuel Frimpong, and the pair could form a formidable partnership if given the chance.

The only downside to Danilo’s game is that he lacks appropriate first-team experience and has yet to make his full Serie A debut for Parma.

The Crociati decided to loan him out to Aris Saloniki last season as a trial, but after making five appearances for the Greek side and scoring twice Parma were more than happy to bring him back to the Stadio Ennio Tardini.